Future floods will be in mind as California town rebuilds after mudslides

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In this Jan.10, 2018, file photo, a damaged car sits over fallen and debris behind downed power lines in Montecito While an aggressive cleanup could mean Montecito will welcome visitors again in weeks, the rebuilding of infrastructure and hundreds of homes will be measured in months and years. It will also offer a chance to re-imagine aspects of a town that has favored slow growth over the runaway development closer to Los Angeles, 90 miles down the coast. - Marcio Jose Sanchez — The Associated Press file

In this Sept.23, 2014, file photo, traffic moves along a portion of the rebuilt road between Darrington, Wash., and Arlington, Wash., that was wiped out by the devastating mudslide that killed 43 people in the community of Oso, Wash. The highway was realigned and raised as much as 20 feet in places, and crews also installed six new culverts. In Montecito, Calf., after cleanup crews haul away the last of the muck that splintered hundreds of homes like a battering ram, the seaside hideaway for the wealthy will begin to rebuild from the worst disaster of its kind in the U.S. since the Oso slide. - Ted S. Warren — The Associated Press file

In this Jan.10, 2018, file photo, a firefighter stands on the roof of a house submerged in mud and rocks in Montecito While an aggressive cleanup could mean Montecito will welcome visitors again in weeks, the rebuilding of infrastructure and hundreds of homes will be measured in months and years. It will also offer a chance to re-imagine aspects of a town that has favored slow growth over the runaway development closer to Los Angeles, 90 miles down the coast. - Marcio Jose Sanchez — The Associated Press file

In this Jan.11, 2018, file photo, Bill Asher walks through mud in his home damaged by storms in Montecito Officials say the possibility of future catastrophic floods will be in mind as Montecito rebuilds following deadly mudslides that devastated the wealthy coastal hideaway. While an aggressive cleanup could mean Montecito will welcome visitors again in weeks, the rebuilding of infrastructure and hundreds of homes will take months or years. - Marcio Jose Sanchez — The Associated Press file

In this combination of file photos on March27, 2014, top, search and rescue workers probe the water covering Washington Highway 530 on the eastern edge of the massive mudslide that struck Oso, Wash., and on cars move down the rebuilt roadway which re-opened to two-way 50 mph traffic on from the same position and angle. The mudslide destroyed the small community of Oso and killed 43 people. In Montecito after cleanup crews haul away the last of the muck that splintered hundreds of homes like a battering ram, the seaside hideaway for the wealthy will begin to rebuild from the worst disaster of its kind in the U.S. since the Oso slide. - Ted S. Warren — The Associated Press file

This Jan.10, 2018, file satellite image released by DigitalGlobe News Bureau shows Highway 101 after storms caused mudslides and flooding in Montecito Officials say the possibility of future catastrophic floods will be in mind as Montecito rebuilds. While an aggressive cleanup could mean Montecito will welcome visitors again in weeks, the rebuilding of infrastructure and hundreds of homes will take months or years. - DigitalGlobe News Bureau via AP, File

In this Jan.13, 2018, file photo, crews work on clearing Highway 101 in the aftermath of a mudslide in Montecito Officials say the possibility of future catastrophic floods will be in mind as Montecito rebuilds following deadly mudslides that devastated the wealthy coastal hideaway. - Marcio Jose Sanchez — The Associated Press file

In this Jan.13, 2018, file photo provided by the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, Capt. John Pepper, Fresno Fire Department, and Rescue Squad Leader RTF-5 searches homes off East Valley Road in Montecito While an aggressive cleanup could mean Montecito will welcome visitors again in weeks, the rebuilding of infrastructure and hundreds of homes will be measured in months and years. It will also offer a chance to re-imagine aspects of a town that has favored slow growth over the runaway development closer to Los Angeles. - Mike Eliason — Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP, File

MONTECITO >> Officials say the possibility of future catastrophic floods will be in mind as Montecito, California, rebuilds after deadly mudslides that devastated the wealthy coastal hideaway.

While an aggressive cleanup could mean Montecito will welcome visitors again in weeks, the rebuilding of infrastructure and hundreds of homes will take far longer. It also offers a chance to reimagine aspects of a town that has favored slow growth over the runaway development closer to Los Angeles, down the coast.

Telephone and electrical lines could be moved from poles to underground conduits. A micro-grid for solar power would increase self-sufficiency. Also looming are questions about how to harden the town against future disaster.

The debris flows leveled entire blocks of homes and killed at least 20 people last week.